Games Afoot
by BrokenWings00
Summary: EliwoodLyn. A short story in which bets are made, rock paper scissors attains an entertaining new twist, and two good friends cross a few lines and become rather embarrassed.
1. Of Coins and Campfires

_Yes, I know, it's shocking, but Teen Titans isn't the only thing I write about! -collective gasp- I know, I know! Moving on..._

_This story isn't going to be very long. I'm estimating four chapters at most. And they're short chapters too. I just didn't want to cram it all into a one-shot._

_This is a Fire Emblem story, taking place during Eliwood's story in Fire Emblem, known in Japan as Fire Emblem: Rekka no Ken, sometime after Eliwood's group saves Lyn and her knights from a painful defeat at Castle Caelin. This story focuses on Eliwood and Lyn. They're just so cute together I can't stand it! So I had to write about it. Can't beat that logic!_

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own Fire Emblem. I do, however, have both Fire Emblem and Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones for Gameboy Advance! The first one is way better, just for the record._**  
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**Chapter 1: **Of Coins and Campfires

Numerous campfires spread out across a dark valley between forested hills and a glassy black river, giving the appearance of orange and gold stars in the nigh sky. It could have been a mirror of the star-studded black canopy on such a cool, clear night. Smoke drifted lazily over the heads of the many battle-worn travelers crowding around the fires for shelter from the frost. Knights, archers and mages alike talked and laughed with their fire-mates as they relaxed and recuperated from the difficult battle they had all faced mere hours before.

"After that fight, I'll be sore for a month," Hector, young lord of Ostia, complained loudly.

The thief, Matthew, allowed himself a laugh. "Maybe you wouldn't be so sore if you didn't spend all of your time in the middle of the battlefield, swinging your axe around like a pendulum and cleaving everything in sight," he said with an officious nod.

Hector scowled. "You wouldn't know much of the battlefield, would you Matthew? You're always lurking somewhere in the shadows," he replied crossly.

A mischievous grin spread across Matthew's face. "Rebecca understands, don't you Rebecca? The middle of the field is far too noisy," he said, leaning toward the young archer who was sitting on Hector's other side.

Rebecca laughed good-naturedly. "You have a point. Staying at a slight distance has countless advantages," she replied airily.

"Now don't bring her into this," Hector said with mock indignation. "She's innocent. You're the one who can't even lift an axe, let alone wield one. Yet you insist on mocking those who can."

"Ouch, that one got me deep, Hector," Matthew replied, wincing dramatically. But he shrugged resignedly. "I guess my only consolation is the knowledge that I can steal your hair off your head and you wouldn't even notice."

"Come on, don't start fights where they don't belong," Guy, who was sitting beside Rebecca, said quickly, cutting off Hector's scathing reply.

Matthew and Rebecca were still laughing when Guy looked over at Rath. "Something wrong, Rath? You've been awfully quiet," he asked.

Rath glanced at the others, who were all looking in his direction. He returned his gaze to its previous position, staring past the flames and out at a smaller fire placed farther away from the others where two people sat.

There was a smaller fire several yards from the mass of large fires at which most of the travelers warmed themselves. This fire was used by Hector, Lyn, Eliwood, and their faithful tactitian. They would sit for a short while after setting up camp to discuss their journey. The four of them usually went to different fires afterward, joining their companions. But lately, Lyn, princess of Caelin and Sacae, and Eliwood, heir of Pherae, had stayed behind at their own private fire, spending hours upon hours talking and enjoying each other's company.

Hector and Rebecca followed Rath's line of sight. They both smiled.

"Ah, so you've spotted the lovebirds," Hector said, adding exaggerated emphasis to the last word.

"Oh don't make fun," Rebecca said, smiling as she watched them as well. "They're adorable."

Matthew made a quiet sound of distaste. "Women," he muttered, shaking his head and rolling his eyes. Guy nodded in consent, allowing himself a smile.

"Lyn'll be kissing him any minute now," Hector said with a smirk.

Guy shook his head. "No way. Eliwood will kiss her first."

Hector cocked an eyebrow. "What makes you say that?" he asked.

"Lyn's a Sacaen," Guy said simply. "It's Sacaen common courtesy for the man to make the first move."

Hector shook his head. "But Eliwood isn't Sacaen, now is he? No, Eliwood's too sensitive to make the first move. He'd be afraid she'd reject him. He's got some major insecurities when it comes to women," he said. "I'd know, I'm his best friend."

"I've got to agree with the big guy on this one," Matthew said, still watching Eliwood and Lyn. "Eliwood can be pretty insecure at times, mainly when Lyn's involved."

Rath glanced back at the group. "Would anyone be interested in a friendly wager?" he asked. "I'll put five gold pieces on Lyn. Guy is right, it's Sacaen common sense."

"I'll do the same," Guy said. The two of them tossed some gold pieces to the ground near their fire. Matthew and Hector put down ten coins each. They all turned to Rebecca.

"What about you, Rebecca?" Matthew asked curiously.

Rebecca smiled. "Under regular circumstances, it could go either way. But tonight, I'll put twenty coins on both of them," she said quietly.

"Both of them?" Hector repeated.

Rebecca nodded. "Yes. They'll both go in at the same time, you'll see," she said, still smiling.

"We'll split the winnings when we win," Matthew said to Hector. Rebecca just smiled again and turned back to watch Eliwood and Lyn.

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_The chapters will get longer, I hope. This was more kind of an intro I guess. Fun times. Tell me what y'all think!_  



	2. Rock Paper Scissors

_Here we have chapter two. Thanks very much to those of you who reviewed! I wasn't expecting to be getting any at all. Now, some of you may recognize the premise of this game from Ever After. God I love that movie. Moving on, Eliwood might seem a tad bit out of character, but he's not very expressive in the game, so it was difficult to determine what would be going through his head. This was as close as I could get._

_Well, without further ado, here is the second chapter! _**  
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**Chapter 2:** Rock Paper Scissors

Lyn stared determinedly into the dark blue eyes of her opponent, daring him to look away. Her gaze was fierce and taunting. Eliwood narrowed his eyes slightly, trying to mirror her expression.

"Ready?" he asked quietly, cocking an eyebrow.

"Of course," Lyn replied in the same even tone. They both curled their right hands into fists.

"One…" Eliwood began slowly.

"Two…" Lyn continued, leaning forward ever so slightly.

"…Three!" they shouted in unison. Both of them stuck out their index and middle fingers.

"Scissors again!" Eliwood cried out in exasperation, a smile spreading across his face in spite of himself.

"You, Lord Eliwood, are reading my thoughts," Lyn replied slyly, a mischievous smirk gracing her features as she watched him curiously.

"And they're as hard to understand as my own," he countered, matching her smile.

"So, Pherae surrenders?" Lyn replied tauntingly.

"Never!" Eliwood cried haughtily. He made a fist again. Lyn smiled brightly and followed suit.

"One… two… three!"

"Ha!" Lyn shouted triumphantly. "Paper beats rock!"

"Foiled again," Eliwood cursed with mock vexation. "I suppose it's my turn then."

"Yes, it is," Lyn replied, settling back into her cross-legged position. "And it better be good."

"Okay then," Eliwood sighed in defeat. He sat back on his heels and stared thoughtfully into the fire for a few moments. "Ah, I've got one. When I was very young, I was outside when it began to rain. I had never seen rain before, and I was convinced the sky was falling, so I ran inside crying. It took quite a while for my parents to calm me down."

Lyn had begun laughing halfway through. When Eliwood finished his nostalgic tale, she was still shaking with mirth, eyes closed tightly. Eliwood smiled as he watched her. His smile soon became full out laughter, however. Something about Lyn's laugh was contagious.

"I like it when you laugh," Eliwood said when they had both calmed down.

Lyn's eyes snapped up to his own as soon as the words were out of his mouth. Eliwood looked surprised at himself. He hadn't meant to say that aloud. He cleared his throat quickly and curled his fingers into a fist. Lyn did the same, though she was still watching him curiously.

"One… two… three!"

Eliwood let out a laugh of victory. "Scissors beats paper! Now spill," he said confidentially, smiling.

"Hm…" Lyn's eyes flicked skyward as she thought. Then she smiled. "Ever since I was a little girl out on the plains, I've wished upon the first star I see every single night," she said, gazing almost wistfully at the stars.

Eliwood smirked curiously. "What do you wish for?" he asked.

Lyn's cheeks colored slightly, green eyes clouding over beneath demurely lowered lashes. "If I told you, it wouldn't come true," she said mysteriously.

Eliwood flashed her a debonair smile. "You won't even tell me?" he asked tauntingly.

"No, not even you," she replied frankly. She then proceeded to stick her tongue out at him.

Eliwood looked thoughtfully at Lyn. He remembered when they had first met. It had been over a year ago while Lyn was on her way to Caelin for the first time. She had only recently learned that she was the true heiress of Marquess Caelin, her grandfather. Eliwood had been able to form an opinion about her character very quickly. She wore her heart on her sleeve. She was a determined and loyal leader, but a friend first and foremost. At the time, that was all the young lord of Pherae had seen in her. She had lived up to his expectations concerning the Sacaen people; she was strong, fast, and beautiful. It wasn't until much later that he discovered the side of her that she rarely allowed to surface. Deep down, she was exceedingly gentle and caring. She hid her weaknesses so far in, they were nearly impossible to find.

But Eliwood knew everything about her. He knew what made her happy and what made her smile, but he also knew what she was afraid of and what made it difficult for her to sleep at night. He heard her slipping out of the camp in the frigid predawn. It wasn't long before he had begun to wonder whether she slept at all. Whenever he got too close to her, asked questions too intimate for casual conversation, she drew away from him. She seemed afraid to open up to him.

But despite that, there was something about her that he found fascinating. She enchanted him in a way he couldn't understand. When he had described this feeling to Hector, the hard-headed Ostian lord had suggested that Lyn might be some kind of Sacaen witch and that Eliwood was indeed under some sort of enchantment. Though he knew Hector was kidding, Eliwood assured his friend that this was not the case. Hector had just laughed and told him that it wasn't entirely difficult to figure out what he was feeling. After that, he wouldn't say another word, no matter how much Eliwood had prodded and begged for advice. It was annoying to the red-headed lord that Hector knew something he didn't. It was usually the reverse.

Even though he didn't understand what he was feeling, Eliwood found that whenever his mind was vacant and he had a moment to relax, his thoughts would land on her. They were in each others' company constantly. They sparred together, they enjoyed eating together, they talked whenever they were given the chance, and when on the battlefield, they often ended up quite close to each other. They stood back-to-back, fending off numberless hordes of enemies on more than one occasion. They made an unstoppable team.

When Eliwood came to his senses, Lyn was looking at the stars again. She wore a contented smile and her eyes were bright with wonder. She didn't seem to notice that he had been analyzing her for several minutes. He smiled. They had settled into a comfortably intimate silence. Lyn shivered suddenly and moved closer to the fire. Eliwood removed his cloak and offered it to her without thinking. It was as if protecting her was second nature, whether it be from the cold or from a ruthless bandit. Lyn smiled appreciatively and accepted the gesture, wrapping the heavy cloak around her shoulders. This struck Eliwood as interesting. She never accepted charity from him, and yet here she was, accepting it.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

"You're welcome," he replied, smiling at her. Maybe this meant she was getting more comfortable with him. To Eliwood, this was very good news.

"Look at them, they're adorable," Rebecca sighed. Hector, Rath, Matthew, and Guy all looked over at her. They exchanged exasperated glances. She was still watching Eliwood and Lyn. And what was more, Serra, Florina, Priscilla, Nino, Louise, Isadora, Fiora, and Farina had all joined her. By this time, the entire camp was aware of the bet, and most of the travelers had decided to participate.

"I hope for all our sakes that Eliwood and Lyn don't notice half the camp watching their every move," Hector sighed, shaking his head slowly.

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_Ha, told you they chapters would get longer! Not much, unfortunately, but like I've said before, this won't be a very long story. Tell me what you think!_  



	3. Complications of Caring

_I'm so sorry this took so long! High school's been killing me. Sophomore year sucks, for the record. But that's beside the point._

_I don't know how I feel about this chapter. It's kind of... I don't know. But it's not the end of the story. I think I'll just write a short little blurb to finish it up and call it a chapter. Yeah._

_Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance is out! Ahaha, I totally have to buy it! But since I'm sure you'd rather be reading the chapter than my mindless babbling, here you go! _**  
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**Chapter 3:** Complications of Caring

Eliwood and Lyn continued their game. It became more amusing as the night wore on and they began to reveal embarrassing stories. The more they talked, the more they laughed, and the more they laughed, the more comfortable they became.

Eliwood had just finished telling a particularly embarrassing story from his childhood when Lyn burst into a fit of laughter. He smiled bemusedly and looked down, but found his eyes drawn to her as she nearly bent double in an effort to restrain her giggles.

The helpless lord watched her as though in a trance. He was struck suddenly by the way the firelight shone on her long green hair and the light pink hue that colored her cheeks from the cold. When Lyn calmed down enough to look up, she found Eliwood staring at her with a rather glazed look, his head tilted to the left a little and his mouth hanging open slightly.

"Eliwood?" she said uncertainly. She moved toward him until their knees were just barely touching and waved a hand in front of his face. "Are you there?"

Eliwood snapped back to reality. He suddenly found himself in a very awkward situation. Lyn was gazing worriedly at him.

"Uh…" he began quickly, blushing for some reason.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have laughed at you," Lyn said quietly, looking abashedly at her feet. Eliwood blinked several times in confusion.

"Oh… oh no, that's not why-" he said hastily, realizing what she meant. She had thought that he had taken offense to her laughing at him. "I mean, I… I'm not upset. I just… lost track of myself for a moment."

Lyn looked up and offered him a gentle smile. "I understand," she said quietly. Then she sighed and looked skyward. "After all of the things that have been happening lately, we're all losing track of ourselves." She said the last part so quietly, Eliwood barely discerned the words.

Eliwood wasn't sure what to say. A heavy silence fell between them. Lyn pulled his cloak a little more tightly around her shoulders. She was valiantly avoiding eye contact with him. The gears in the red-head's brain ground down to a painfully slow rate. Something strange was going on tonight. Some line drawn between them had been crossed. Lyn never opened herself up. She put on a brave mask for the outside world while hiding her true pains and terrors. That had all been behind the line, but now that this line had been breached, a virtual myriad of layers had been added to the depth of her personality. Eliwood was seeing sides of her he'd never thought even existed within this stoic young lady of Caelin.

Poor Eliwood was still thinking of how to reply when Lyn whispered, "I'm sorry, Eliwood. About your father… and Ninian…"

Eliwood's eyes widened. He hadn't been expecting that. She still refused to look at him. Her dark green eyes were downcast and clouded as she stared determinedly at her feet.

"I understand what it's like to lose everyone you love," she continued. "But… it will get better. The pain… the… emptiness… it never passes completely, but you'll get used to it being there. It serves to remind you to love every minute you're alive."

Eliwood was shocked beyond all reason. Her words startled him. He sometimes forgot that she had lost her entire tribe in one day. Everyone she had known and loved had been savagely ripped away. He couldn't even comprehend what that must have been like.

"Lyn, I-" he began, but she silenced him with her index finger pressed to his lips.

"I don't want sympathy, Eliwood," she whispered, looking straight into his eyes. "I just want you to know… I'm here. I'll always be right here by your side. And I want you to be okay. I want you to be happy."

Eliwood stared at her. He was struck dumb. He had no idea how to reply to something like that. He finally blurted the first thing that came to mind. "Don't you ever worry about yourself?"

Lyn looked surprised when he said this. "Well... of course I… sometimes…"

"No, you always think of everyone else before you think of yourself," Eliwood cut her off. He sounded like he was scolding her. "You're important too, you know."

Lyn stared at him, still expressing surprise. "I… um…" she stammered.

"I worry about you," Eliwood admitted quietly.

Lyn stopped and looked at him curiously. "What do you mean?" she asked suspiciously.

"I mean I'm always worried that you'll get hurt," he continued quietly, avoiding eye contact.

"You mean you think I can't take care of myself," she replied coolly.

Eliwood's eyes snapped up to her. "No! That's not what I mean at all! I just-" he began.

"You just think I'm a frail little girl and I need to be taken care of," Lyn continued scathingly.

"No!" Eliwood groaned. This was not going well at all. "I know better than anyone that you are perfectly capable of defending yourself. I am the one who gets whipped every week when we spar, if I may remind you." Lyn smiled a little in spite of herself. Eliwood continued. "I just… I can't help but worry about you…"

Silence fell heavily between them. Eliwood was staring dejectedly at his shoes. Neither of them noticed how quiet the camp was as all of its occupants watched, despite the fact that they couldn't hear a word of what was transpiring.

"I guess that's just what happens when two people care about each other," Lyn finally said quietly. Eliwood froze. He looked up at her curiously, wondering if she meant what he thought she meant. He found himself staring straight into her dark green eyes, and suddenly there wasn't enough air between them. He became acutely aware of how close they were sitting. He took a deep breath, still staring wide-eyed at her. Lyn was giving him a similar look, though she was smiling a little.

Before either of them knew what was happening, they were both leaning forward. They slowly inched closer until they were way too close to back down. Thought ceased in Eliwood's mind. All that existed was the woman in front of him. Lyn, however, was fighting against her nature. She had grown up thinking that there wasn't a single noble in the world that wasn't a spoiled rotten moron. Then Eliwood had come along. He defied everything she had ever believed, but she found that she loved being proven wrong. Now, as she closed her eyes, she was fighting hard against rational thought and her primal instincts to turn away. But her instincts weren't putting up much of a fight.

Rebecca was holding her breath. She and most of the girls around her were leaning forward slightly, watching wide-eyed with growing smiles. The camp fell completely silent as Eliwood and Lyn finally closed the distance, lips meeting, eyes closing. Rebecca exhaled excitedly. She gave Serra a high five. Score.

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_Once again, this isn't the end. Tell me what you think!_  



	4. It Must Be A Girl Thing

_Well, here it is, the final chapter. It's painfully short, just to warn you. I just felt like I needed to wrap it up with an epilogue-like thing. Come on, I couldn't leave you hanging without seeing Eliwood and Lyn's reactions when they realized the entire camp had been betting on when they would start making out!_

_On another note, I just bought Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance. It's pretty good so far, but it starts off kind of slowly._

_Anyway, here's the final chapter! It's been fun. _**  
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**Chapter 4:** It Must Be a Girl Thing

The entire campsite went completely silent. Even the fires seemed to have ceased crackling. Every single occupant was staring wide-eyed at what was happening. They had all seen it coming, but it was still a bit of shock to see two of their leaders kissing right in front of them. The two leaders in question were completely oblivious, however. The two of them had absolutely no idea that the rest of them existed. They were a little busy of course. They were absorbed in each other, senses overwhelmed with the feel and taste of the other, not to mention the silence they had yet to notice. They were both completely beyond the reach of the others at the camp, escaping off into their own world.

But it had to end at some point. Eliwood and Lyn became very aware of their surroundings when the campsite broke into cheers. They jumped apart and whipped around. Every single occupant was watching them, clapping and cheering and whistling. Lyn and Eliwood both flushed dark red and groaned. Then they looked back at each other and smiled.

"It seems we lost track of ourselves," Eliwood said quietly. They looked at each other for another moment, not sure what to do next. But Lyn took initiative and wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him fiercely as they laughed together.

"She knew. How could she have known that was going to happen!" Hector shouted angrily as he emptied the gold out of his pockets.

"I don't know," Matthew grumbled. "It must be a girl thing."

"What do you mean?" Guy asked as he too fished more gold from his pockets.

Matthew pointed over at the girls. All of them seemed to be collecting a large amount of gold from the men of the camp.

Rath smiled a little as he stood to give them their gold. "I guess I should have placed my bet with Rebecca after all," he said quietly.

"You sure should have," Rebecca said as she sat back down at the fire. Hector and Matthew shot her withering glares. She just smiled. "It's your own fault."

The boys merely grumbled in reply. Wil suddenly appeared next to her. He wrapped his arm around her waist and grinned at her. "If I give you a kiss, do I still have to pay you?" he asked smoothly, wiggling his eyebrows.

Rebecca raised an eyebrow and shoved him into Hector. She smiled mischievously. "Nice try. Pay up," she said simply.

With all of the noise around the camp, no one seemed to notice Eliwood and Lyn, who were still sitting by their fire. Lyn's head was on his shoulder as they stared up at the stars, talking and laughing quietly. All bets were off on this one.

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_The End!_  



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